The barscape is more welcoming to women in leadership roles

There’s a shake-up happening within New York’s bartending culture—and it has nothing to do with ice.

In 2014, some of the city’s most prestigious bars and restaurants named women to head-bartender and beverage-director positions, including Dead Rabbit (Jillian Vose), Death & Co (Eryn Reece), Ai Fiori (Jen Gordon) and Cosme (Yana Volfson).

And if the first few months of 2015 are any indication, the trend for star female...